The Social Policy Association (SPA) has partnered with Sense about Science to offer a team of Social Policy researchers a funded opportunity to participate in Evidence Week in Parliament in 2026 and share insights from their research. Evidence Week (https://senseaboutscience.org/what-is-evidence-week/) brings together the public, researchers and parliamentarians to discuss how evidence is used and scrutinised at Westminster. It is hosted by Sense about Science with the support of the House of Commons Library, the House of Lords Library,the Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology, the UK Statistics Authority, Ipsos and research institutions across the UK.
The SPA will provide financial support for a team to present their research to MPs and Peers in a half day slot in the Jubilee Room in Westminster. The SPA will also contribute to the costs of travel (within the UK), accommodation, and subsistence for up to 5 researchers up to a total of £500 per person.
What you will get from participating
You will receive communication training and be supported to produce a policy brief and 3-minute video about your research and its findings which you can use for policy engagement beyond Evidence Week (examples of these videos can be seen here). Activities and support include:
Policy training and briefing paper
An online “Introduction to Policy’ training session drawing on Sense about Science’s many years of experience of working with researchers and policy makers to change policy. As part of the training, you will be provided with a policy briefing template which helps distil the key messages from your research, communicates these ideas effectively, and ensures the focus is on the key policy implications and recommendations of your research. You will receive individual feedback to ensure that your briefing is focused and effective. The policy brief will form the basis of the ‘quick-fire’, three-minute briefing that you will deliver in parliament.
Promotional video
The policy briefing document will be used to develop the script for a three-minute promotional video. This video can be sent to Parliamentarians and shared on social media after Evidence Week to further amplify your participation, and most importantly, your research and its findings. You will work with a video production company to produce the video. The recording will happen over Zoom.
Contacting MPs
Sense about Science will ensure that there is up-to-date information about all MPs and relevant Peers, their roles and responsibilities (ministerial posts, committees, APPGs), and interests (speeches, legislation) so that specific MPs that will be interested in your research can be targeted.
Local and social media
You will be provided with a communications pack designed to help you get the most out of your Evidence Week partnership. It contains a summary of the key messages of Evidence Week, draft tweets, graphics about your briefing, and advice on MP outreach and template emails. You will have access to two training sessions for you and colleagues in your comms/media teams so that you can understand how best to use the comms pack.
Sense about Science has provided examples of a number of overarching themes based on government priorities where MPs need more evidence.
- Problem solving and complex policy challenges. Examples include:
- Impact of devolution and other opportunities to address regional disparities in health, education and economy
- The rising gap between the provision of healthcare, mental healthcare and social care
- Justice system including the court and prison fit for modern demand
- Impact of environmental pollution from drugs, water and (micro) plastics
- Efficiency and effectiveness. Examples of possible research topics include:
- Artificial intelligence tools to improve efficiency in public service and efficacy in policy outcomes
- New digital technologies to improve outcomes such as in farming, health and education
- New innovations to provide better insights of local and regional issues
- Unpacking complex subjects. Examples of such research include:
- Health inflation resulting from increasing drug prices, a growing aging population and diminishing resources
- Population migration and the impact on public sector demands
- Welfare spending, increased number of people in unemployment and decreasing productivity in the economy
If you have evidence and insights on a topic that doesn’t seem to fit easily into the themes outlined, please get in touch by contacting Ann Marie Gray (am.gray@ulster.ac.uk) and we’d be happy to discuss and see if it would be appropriate for Evidence Week.
The Provisional Timeline for the training, preparation and event is as follows:
- Sense about Science deliver ‘Introduction to policy’ training session for partners (Late February)
- Pod title and summary description collaboratively agreed (Early March)
- Researcher bios and photos sent to Sense about Science (Early March)
- First draft of policy brief and 3-minute video script to Sense about Science (Mid March)
- Sense about Science send feedback on policy brief and script (Late March)
- Communications pack sent to research team (Early April)
- Team provides any additional resources to be shared on the Evidence Week website (Early April)
- Sense about Science send names and contacts of the MPs and Peers specifically targeted for your work (Early April)
- Second round of policy brief feedback (Mid April)
- Sense about Science deliver training sessions on the Communications pack and MP engagement (Mid April)
- Video recording session (Mid April)
- First draft of videos sent to research team (Mid May)
- Sense about Science deliver training session on ‘what to expect on the day’ of pod briefings (Late May)
- First draft video edits/revision sent to Sense about Science (Late May)
- Second draft video shared with research team (mid June)
- Final videos sent to partners (Mid June)
- Evidence Week Opening event (June/July
- Evidence Pods in the Jubilee room (June/July)
- Evidence Week Reception/networking event (June/July)
Process for application
Applications should be made using the form below.
Please note that applicants must be members of the Social Policy Association, and it is expected that multi-institutional teams will include at least one early career colleague.
Please email completed applications to v.duffy@ulster.ac.uk by 5pm on 19 January 2026, ensuring that SPA Evidence Week Call is in the subject line of the email.
Successful applicants will be notified in early February 2026
Social Policy Association – Opportunity to showcase your research in Parliament to maximise impact.
To help maximise the policy impact of your research, the Social Policy Association will support one multi-institutional research team to present their insights at Sense about Science’s event, Evidence Week in Parliament.
The SPA will fund a team for a half-day slot to present their research to MPs and Peers in the Jubilee Room in Westminster. You will also produce a policy brief and 3-minute video about your research and its findings which you can use for policy engagement beyond Evidence Week. SPA will cover the Evidence Week participation costs and also contribute to the costs of travel (within the UK), accommodation, and subsistence for up to 5 researchers to a total of £500 per person.
If you would like to apply for this support, please complete the short template below and return to Victoria Duffy – v.duffy@ulster.ac.uk, by 5pm 19 January 2026.
Please contact Ann Marie Gray am.gray@ulster.ac.uk for further information.
| 1. Name of lead applicant | |
| 2. Research group details including names and affiliated institutions of all team members. It is expected that teams will include at least one early career researcher.
The team can include up to 5 people who will take part in Evidence Week in person. |
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| 3. Executive summary of your research topic (200 words max.) including:
– Description of problem your research is addressing – What you found – How your research fits in with the wider current policy context |
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| 4. Full details of your publications and publicly available products linked to the theme you are seeking to promote at the Evidence Week Event. | |
| 5. Indicate the status of the output(s) listed at 4 – e.g., published (give details, DOI etc), in review (state journal), manuscript written but not yet submitted (target submission date and journal), reports or other outputs.
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| 6. List the key individuals and organisations you would like to connect with at, or as a consequence of, the Evidence Week Event.
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| 7. Potential outcomes arising from the connections you have identified at 6. Please indicateyou’re your team anticipates those outcomes might help deliver ‘impact’. |